Jesus and marriage

Jesus went to weddings (see John 2) and talked about marriage (see Matthew 5 and 19), but it is clear that Jesus was not married. Yet secular writers (see Dan Brown) often argue that He was married. And another such speculation has arisen in the past week. A small Coptic manuscript was found that purports […]

Christ is all

Meditating on Psalm 110 (the most-quoted OT passage by the NT — see Mt. 22:44; 26:64; Mk. 14:62; Lk. 20:42-43; 22:69; Acts 2:34-35; Heb. 1:13), Charles Spurgeon wrote of our Savior: Give me Christ, and I have no desire for anything beyond him, for Christ is all. Whatever of good we may wish for, it […]

What has changed?

Transformation isn’t always readily or immediately apparent. Go to a new car lot and it may be hard to tell the difference between the 2012 and 2011 models. But underneath the hood, there are likely to be significant improvements. Or when looking on a store shelf and seeing the label “new and improved” affixed to […]

Grab bag

Some helpful articles from around the Internet. This week’s articles focus mainly on the topics of technology and counseling: Timothy Raymond has a list of “20 Things Pastors Hear in Counseling.” How many of these are you equipped to help people address biblically? John Piper reminds us why the Psalms are so significant in counseling […]

The ascended Christ

On first reading, it seems like just a simple statement in a story. We know that the sentence reveals an event that is important, but the real significance of the words is not readily apparent. “And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received […]

Grab bag

Some helpful articles from around the internet: Justin Taylor offers “Eight Reasons Why My Anxiety is Pointless and Foolish.” In “Pray the Scriptures,” Scotty Smith confesses, I am a recovering self-centered pragmatic pray-er — a believer who spent many of my first years in Christ thinking of God more as a sugar daddy than the […]

Do you love Jesus?

More than 25 years ago, Raye Jeanne and I met. Our relationship was progressing fairly rapidly and I was trying to sort out my thoughts about her and us while at the same time feeling an emotional pull in a particular direction. There was a topic I wanted to address with her, but knew that […]

“My Father and Your Father…”

One of the joys of reading Scripture is stumbling across the unexpected in the midst of the familiar. For instance, while we are well acquainted with the resurrection account, there are some unexpected treasures in the midst of the miraculous. Consider this statement by Jesus to Mary in the garden: “Stop clinging to Me, for […]

The magnitude of Christ’s works

“Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:30–31, NASB) The love of […]

The resurrected Savior

The accounts of the resurrection are very familiar to us. And because of that, it’s easy to miss the reason for the account — like every other Gospel passage, the resurrection is given to provide us information about the Savior so that we will worship Him. The advantage of the shortest of the resurrection accounts […]

Prophecy and the crucifixion

Jesus was not only resolute in His intention to go to the cross, but God intentionally planned the death of Christ. Consider, for example, the number of Old Testament prophecies that John alone says were fulfilled at the crucifixion of Christ (other Gospel writers offer even more prophetic fulfillments in their crucifixion accounts): Jesus’ tunic […]

They didn’t know what they were saying

At the trials and crucifixion of Christ, there were many accusations made against Him. Yet these accusations and declarations were far closer to the truth about Christ than those who uttered them realized. A few examples: Caiaphas — “Now Caiaphas was the one who had advised the Jews that it was expedient for one man to […]

“They crucified Him”

The words of the crucifixion are simple: “And they crucified Him” (Mk. 15:24). Yet there is a horror behind this kind of death, as one doctor has told: Simon is ordered to place the patibulum on the ground and Jesus is quickly thrown backwards with His shoulders against the wood. The legionnaire feels for the […]

Paradoxes of the crucifixion

Whenever I read the account of the crucifixion of Christ, I am always amazed at the simplicity of the account of the actual crucifixion (for instance, Matthew almost regards it as an afterthought — “and when they had crucified Him…,” Mt. 27:35) and the ironic and paradoxical activities surrounding the events of the crucifixion. Consider […]

The cup that the Father gave Christ

We have been reading the Gospels for almost four months in our Bible reading program. For four months we have been consumed with Christ. For four months, each day we have had a new or increasing view of the nature of Christ. Perhaps the temptation has been to think, “there must be something more that […]